The piercing whine coming from the hall could mean only one thing—something I cooked in the kitchen had set off the smoke detector. But what? The bigger surprise came in the when of it all. Our smoke detector had quit working a while ago. When had my husband installed a new one without my knowledge? […]
Humor
Make Someone’s Day
Today I stopped to pick up some groceries on my way home from a haircut. The store seemed busy. When I went to check out, I found all available checkers engaged. I pulled into the most likely line to finish first and soon discovered my mistake. At the register stood a woman with a pile […]
Pardon Me?
My husband recently ordered a hearing aid. Wearing it this week, he and I were headed to breakfast when he asked, “Where is that clicking clock?” “You mean the turn signal?” I said. Not funny. But true. Operating noisy, outdoor equipment for thirty years in his career as a landscaper/groundskeeper, my husband is nearly deaf. […]
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Book Pick #4–Author Richard Spillman
Few speculative fiction books with frightening content make the grade for my to-be-read pile, but this one’s premise captured my interest from the beginning. I’ve long known the biblical account of Lazarus, the man whom Jesus rose from the dead, but I’ve never considered what might have happened to that man after his encounter […]
Entertaining Angels Unaware?
Though door-to-door salesmen are rare these days, they still exist, but I’m not comfortable with a stranger coming into my home to demonstrate a product he has for sale. This week, though, my husband, who has a tender heart for anyone struggling to make a living, invited a vacuum cleaner salesman in. I know what […]
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Happy Mother’s Day
With thoughts of mothers and a special day to celebrate them this week, today I re-post an adaptation I created in 2015 from a song dedicated to the real reason women are mothers—their children. Using the acronym we are all familiar with—M-O-T-H-E-R—with a nod to the original writer who gave us the song based on […]
Birthday Bash
This week I entered a new decade of life. To celebrate I invited several close friends to join me for a Mad Hatter High Tea at the castle on the hill in Eugene, Oregon, otherwise known as the Shelton-McMurphy-Johnson house. My guests came dressed for a party. Many of us wore our favorite hats. […]
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Ants Do March!
We’ve never had ants inside our home. We’ve seen them outside and had them exterminated by a professional, but never experienced any trouble with them inside. Until earlier this month. My husband, in anticipation of the coming spring weather, power washed our patio and removed the winter growth of moss and other unsightly debris. A […]
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Gaining Perspective
This week, being the klutz that I am, I managed to dislocate my hip. Fortunately, I’m on good terms with my chiropractor and he saw me right away. Recovery, though, would take time. Standing often proved too painful, so I borrowed my wheeled office chair to give me mobility around the house. While I meandered […]
Without Warning
Last Sunday my family emerged from church to a rainy downpour mixed with a sprinkling of white snowflakes. I’d heard that we might see some snow in the mix Sunday or Monday, but no predictions of anything more serious were made. Rain and snow continued to fall throughout the day like a snow globe continually […]